मुष्क

See also: मूषक and मूषिक

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

মুষ্ক (Assamese script)
ᬫᬸᬱ᭄ᬓ (Balinese script)
মুষ্ক (Bengali script)
𑰦𑰲𑰬𑰿𑰎 (Bhaiksuki script)
𑀫𑀼𑀱𑁆𑀓 (Brahmi script)
မုၑ္က (Burmese script)
મુષ્ક (Gujarati script)
ਮੁਸ਼੍ਕ (Gurmukhi script)
𑌮𑍁𑌷𑍍𑌕 (Grantha script)
ꦩꦸꦰ꧀ꦏ (Javanese script)
𑂧𑂳𑂭𑂹𑂍 (Kaithi script)
ಮುಷ್ಕ (Kannada script)
មុឞ្ក (Khmer script)
ມຸຩ຺ກ (Lao script)
മുഷ്ക (Malayalam script)
ᠮᡠᢢᡬᠠ (Manchu script)
𑘦𑘳𑘬𑘿𑘎 (Modi script)
ᠮᠤᢔᢉᠠ (Mongolian script)
𑧆𑧔𑧌𑧠𑦮 (Nandinagari script)
𑐩𑐸𑐲𑑂𑐎 (Newa script)
ମୁଷ୍କ (Odia script)
ꢪꢸꢰ꣄ꢒ (Saurashtra script)
𑆩𑆶𑆰𑇀𑆑 (Sharada script)
𑖦𑖲𑖬𑖿𑖎 (Siddham script)
මුෂ‍්ක (Sinhalese script)
𑩴𑩒𑪀 𑪙𑩜 (Soyombo script)
𑚢𑚰𑚶𑚊 (Takri script)
முஷ்க (Tamil script)
ముష్క (Telugu script)
มุษฺก (Thai script)
མུ་ཥྐ (Tibetan script)
𑒧𑒳𑒭𑓂𑒏 (Tirhuta script)
𑨢𑨃𑨯𑩇𑨋 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Iranian *muškas, which is traditionally derived synchronically from मूष् (mūṣ, “mouse”) +‎ -क (-ka, diminutive suffix), the shape of human testicles being compared to mice. A similar usage of "mouse" to describe a body part is also found in Latin mūsculus (“muscle”).^[1]^[2] However, Lubotsky is skeptical of this derivation due to the short u vowel in मुष्क (muṣka) implying the lack of a laryngeal, as opposed to the long ū in मूष् (mūṣ), and leaves the origin open.^[3]

Pronunciation

(Vedic) IPA^(key): /muʂ.kɐ́/
(Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /muʂ.kɐ/

Noun

मुष्क • (muṣká) stem, m

testicle, scrotum
- c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda
(dual number) pudenda muliebria
(dubious) an arm
a muscular or stout person
a thief
a crowd, heap, multitude

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of मुष्क
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	मुष्कः (muṣkáḥ)	मुष्कौ (muṣkaú) मुष्का¹ (muṣkā́¹)	मुष्काः (muṣkā́ḥ) मुष्कासः¹ (muṣkā́saḥ¹)
vocative	मुष्क (múṣka)	मुष्कौ (múṣkau) मुष्का¹ (múṣkā¹)	मुष्काः (múṣkāḥ) मुष्कासः¹ (múṣkāsaḥ¹)
accusative	मुष्कम् (muṣkám)	मुष्कौ (muṣkaú) मुष्का¹ (muṣkā́¹)	मुष्कान् (muṣkā́n)
instrumental	मुष्केण (muṣkéṇa)	मुष्काभ्याम् (muṣkā́bhyām)	मुष्कैः (muṣkaíḥ) मुष्केभिः¹ (muṣkébhiḥ¹)
dative	मुष्काय (muṣkā́ya)	मुष्काभ्याम् (muṣkā́bhyām)	मुष्केभ्यः (muṣkébhyaḥ)
ablative	मुष्कात् (muṣkā́t)	मुष्काभ्याम् (muṣkā́bhyām)	मुष्केभ्यः (muṣkébhyaḥ)
genitive	मुष्कस्य (muṣkásya)	मुष्कयोः (muṣkáyoḥ)	मुष्काणाम् (muṣkā́ṇām)
locative	मुष्के (muṣké)	मुष्कयोः (muṣkáyoḥ)	मुष्केषु (muṣkéṣu)

¹Vedic

Descendants

Dardic:
- Kalasha: muṣk, muṣ
→ Middle Persian: mwšk' (mušk)
- Persian: مشک (mošk)
- → Ancient Greek: μόσχος (móskhos)
  - Greek: μόσχος (móschos)
    - → Romanian: mosc
  - → Late Latin: muscus (see there for further descendants)
  - → Translingual: Moschus
→ Old Armenian: մուշկ (mušk) (via an Iranian language)
- Armenian: մուշկ (mušk)
→ Telugu: ముష్కము (muṣkamu)

References

^ Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) “muṣká-”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 363
^ Webster's New World College Dictionary, Cleveland, Ohio: Wiley Publishing Inc., 1953
^ Lubotsky, Alexander (2011) “mus·ká-”, in The Indo-Aryan Inherited Lexicon (in progress) (Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Project), Leiden University, page 319